Zeus

10 hours ago, sheepprincessgara said:

i want the big buff girl from overwatch to fist my vagina, fold me up, and then throw me off a cliff

 

 

I find myself with a lot of time to think about the state of Japanese music and how things have changed since I first became a fan. I'm sure you guys have these thoughts as well. For the 10th anniversary, I'm going to publish some random musings I've had about the scene. They'll just be bullet points from one sentence to a few sentences about anything related to visual kei or J-rock. If you guys want to join in just leave your bullet points below and I'll be posting them sometime soon.

 

Thoughts from @Zeus:

 

the GazettE

 

• We always had a dream of getting together a J-Rock Wikipedia of sorts to catalog our history. That idea is all but dead in the water. Last.fm is the closest we have to that and it's very decentralized. The day those servers go down is the day an entire epoch of international visual kei ends.
• From the perspective of an international fan, live distributed releases suck ass. It sucks more when the song in question is not put on another purchasable release, rendering that song out of reach for people like me unless we fork over tons of money to a third party reseller, so it's not like we could benefit the band if we tried. It really sucks when it was given away at a band's last gig, because the fans of that band will only dwindle from that moment on and the release will become even rarer until it reaches a tipping point where no one cares anymore. Then, you might get it if someone feels kind and doesn't purge it from their hard drives.
• An entire era of Japanese history was lost when Mega Upload went down. Many places exclusively used that website for all their deeds. It's said that 4% of all the traffic in the internet flowed through their servers at their peak. I say this because there are lots of releases that you just can't find anymore because links are dead and the fans have left. I've learned a valuable lesson about the permanence of data.
• I used to hate collection albums and viewed them as a quick way to make a buck. But after some stellar recent releases and faves of mine that broke up and left a collection album behind before they broke up, they are very useful for both sharing a blast from the past and for making mix tapes.
• Most blogspots have always seemed like a futile attempt to mimic what we do here for some bored teenagers 15 seconds of fame. I used to expend my energy trying to stamp them out, but that's just as futile. There were a select few that actually served as an archival device and were lit. Places like Byouto and Evil en lucifer existed with a plan and a demographic in mind and actually bothered with mirroring their own links and getting their own CDs.
• Re-recordings are almost always better than remasters for me. At least with the former it feels like the band put some effort into it. Speaking of which, the re-recordings on Lycaon's second album aren't that bad. I still don't like EROS or Aventure though.
• I've never listened to an X JAPAN song and I don't understand all of the hate Yoshiki gets sometimes. I like poking fun at Japanese Democracy, but other than that I'm from a different era than original X fans (are there even any left) so I can't cash in on nostalgia. I'm so far divorced from their music I have no feelings one way or another and if it ever does get released, I plan on buying, listening, and reviewing the new album fairly as if we haven't been waiting forever to hear it.

 

THE PIASS
 

• Never thought I would see a scene without UNDERCODE. Then again, there was a time I thought there would never be a scene without Matina and these days few people remember that label.
• Does YOHIO hang around here? He must visit every now and again - this place is too addictive and centralizing not to.
• Is there even anywhere else to go? Where do all the n00bs come from?
• I haven't heard anyone refer to anything as "too American" in years. We successfully stamped that ignorance out of the scene!
• I remember when XodiacK was first formed, their partnership with HearJapan, and their subsequent financial failure with their first single. They were a joke back then. Now they are considered a cult classic. It's crazy how malleable opinions are.
• BORN and Lycaon are two bands I waited forever for their disbandment, and when it happened I wasn't happy.
• Visual kei is making a third shift in sound away from the millenial-kei tunes into the unknown. This is a great time to be a fan!

 

Thoughts from @fitear1590:

 

the fin.

• I need more VK bands with technical guitar work that aren't necessarily tied to some offshoot of metal (Aicle was a perfect example)
• The lines between VK and certain brands of indie are getting more porous; a very exciting combination of worlds!
• Honestly, what happened to Shiina Ringo? She was such a prominent figure in my music taste at one point, but she fizzled out...
• Please. End. The. Treble. Synth. Fad.
• Long live "art kei". May the patron saints (ex-members of bands like Moran, yazzmad, amber gris, etc.) keep the style going!

 

Thoughts from @emmny:

 

DIV

• amber gris saved visual kei after Buglug tried to destroy it and before issei literally almost destroyed himself falling off a balcony meto style
• Few things were more depressing than seeing Yuuki ruin UnsraW and then flop into infinity with DOAK
• "Lost november" by Diaura is the most iconic vk song released in...ever
• Revival kei was the only thing that saved vk past 2012
• DIR EN GREY's career trajectory has been amazing and no I don't care what you have to say about DSS
• No, i'm not EVER getting over D'espairsray so can it.

• Can bands stop acting like visual kei is still popular, trying to play massive venues (which would have been considered average size 10 years ago) and then flopping intensely? Miztavlah YOU'RE NEXT...300/1200 O-West wait on it
• DADAROMA and Mejibray have the biggest followings in the western fandoms since vk died and its actually kinda adorable...won't save vk tho
• Ikenai Kiss by DIV was both the peak and death of EDM kei...RIP

 

Thoughts from @doombox:

 

CROSSFAITH

 

• I still don't know how baby VK bands manage to pay for their costumes and make up artists when they can't get 100 people in a venue.
• MIYAVI proved you can survive after VK, have a public marriage and family, be covered in tattoos, and still be wildly popular.
• These days it's getting plain to see VK has gone down like the Titanic and we're all waiting in tiny lifeboats, clinging to each other and hoping another big ship will eventually come to save us.
• I'm still not over K (Pay money To my Pain), Shunsuke (Eldorado, bis), or Jasmine You (Versailles). 
• ONE OK ROCK took over the world. I'm still in shock.
• Japanese electro-core burnt out way too fast but man it was fun while it lasted. 

 

Thoughts from @tetsu_sama69:

BAISER

 

• When will people realize that most VK bands are just homage of older previous groups and THIS WILL ALWAYS BE A THING?!!?
• Most VK singers are just massive fanboys of Kiyoharu/Kyo/Hyde/Ruki even if it doesn't seem like they are there always SOMETHING that gives it away and trust me even your vk daddies had people they were fanboys of as well.

• "Musical differences" is just an excuse for you ran out of mommy/daddy's money for your costumes/recordings OR you just don't get along
• To survive in this fandom you either have to be extremely open-minded or stick to what you know you like but trust me... not everyone is going to like what you like and you have to accept that
• Accept it, we're all weeaboos.

 

 

Thoughts from @Ito:

Sel'm
 

• Not only has aie somehow managed tostill be sticking around, he is almost seemingly trying to  single handedly save VK...and somehow suceeding? 
• It took nearly the full span of 10 years, but every one of my favorite VK bands from 2007 has disbanded
• I am not sure if VK has gotten worse or if I've just gotten older and grumpier
• Yoshiki has transitioned from a legend to a laughingstock in the community
• It surprises me when I meet someone IRL and they tell me they are a big VK fan...and then I find out they haven't heard of MH. Like where the hell else are you going?
• I wish I was more inclined to go back and check out older work. I know I have missed out on plenty of wonderful Jrock, but I am just so keen on keeping with what it current. I really need to fix that.
• Are we ever going to get any VK bands to come to the States again, outside of the biggest of names?
• While I listen to far less VK now than I used to (read that as my musical tastes have broadened), it still holds an incredibly special place in my heart.

 

Thoughts from @CAT5:

 

八十八ヶ所巡礼
 

• International Visual Kei fans are some of the craziest, most irritating, and deranged people that I've come across. They're also some of the most passionate, interesting, fun-loving, and generous music fans that I've had the pleasure of knowing. There's always been a stigma surrounding the community, but in my experience, there's more good to be said than bad.
• Monochrome-Heaven is one of the most slept-on forums of all time. We've been around for a decade and the community is still thriving despite the fact that forums are continually slipping into obsolescence.
• The world of J-rock is vast and infinite, and there's always something new and different to try if you look for it or ask the right people.
• Trying to convince VK fans that music outside of VK is somehow "better" or more worthwhile is an exercise in futility. Condescending or scoffing at VK fans is also equally idiotic. I've done both. Don't do it. You'll just come off as an absolute dick who's insecure in his own tastes and interests.
• VK marketing ploys are still pretty fucking hilarious and ridiculous. 
• Speaking of which, most of us have, at one point, gone broke for Visual Kei and Japanese music in general. It's expensive and wallet-crippling, yet glorious all the same.
• I still can't wrap my head around cheki or conditional disbandments.
• DIR EN GREY have never NOT been relevant.

 

Phantasmagoria
 

• MH and VK fans at large love themselves a good drama/scandal. From what i've seen, it's usually best to just have a sense of humor about these things.
• J-rock changes over time. Your favorite era may have been five, ten, or even fifteen years ago. Hell, it might even be NOW. Whatever the case, accept that the musical landscape is constantly changing. I think it's more effective to cherish your favs. and continuously sing their praises than it is to bitch and moan about bygone styles and eras, and how all new music sucks.
• Sharing keeps the J-rock community alive. It's what's kept us going this long. And not just the sharing of the music itself, but the sharing of news, lyrics/translations, scans, review, live reports, images...even something as simple as sharing your own, unique thoughts about a band or a release. It all counts. Every little piece contributes to keeping the scene alive at large. MH has truly been blessed in this regard, as so many of our members have come here to share openly and freely all out of love for VK, J-rock, and Japanese music as a whole. It's a beautiful thing and I thank everyone for every penny spent, every CD ripped, every mb uploaded, every post typed, and every general ounce of energy poured into our common love for Japanese music.

Thanks for reading!

I play exclusively on PC since I gave up consoles around the PS2/XBOX era (not of my own choice).

Check if your GTX950 can play it. I'm not the best person to ask since my graphics card is the size of a small engine and it handles anything I can throw at it. The game scales wonderfully though, so you might squeeze by on Medium with no problems. I have it on high and what slowdown does happens is attributed to the engine.

FYI the 60fps is a hard cap for games only. All screens are pre-rendered at 20 to 30 fps which makes my 144hz monitor sad. I need them to just unlock frame rates in some fashion so I can fight at 144...but that might make the game too easy.

I don't normally post in this topic because Overwatch is life but after four days and twenty hours of playing it almost nonstop and having to force myself to log into Overwatch to rank up some, I've realized just how bloody brilliant NieR:Automata is. Like holy fucking hell, it's probably the best Japanese RPG I've played in some time...maybe even ever. The way it plays with genres as well as it does my expectations, the world building, 2B and her animations, the frantic bullet hell sections that keep my hands sweating...I haven't played a game this compelling in years. No one gets off Yoko Taro's crazy ride until he says so. It scratches the itch I had for a non open-world RPG with some story and more conventional elements. It's a better game than the last five Final Fantasy titles I picked up and Square Enix published this on a budget. I want DLC. I need DLC.

 

 

Tracklist:

1. 枯詩

2. Cassis

3. D.L.N

4. CALM ENVY

5. reila

6. UNTITLED

7. WITHOUT A TRACE

8. 紅蓮

9. 白き優鬱

10. PLEDGE

11. 絲

12. 体温

 

| Is 2017 the year of boss album re-recordings?

 

The initial announcement of Traces Vol. 2 had me cautious. Traces Best of 2005-2009 was an uninspiring grab bag of singles designed to please, but it didn't feel like anything more than a standard compilation. Traces Vol. 2 is a different beast entirely. Once the band announced the album would be completely re-recorded ballads featuring some older songs, it went from a blip on my radar to the most awaited release of the first quarter of 2017.

 

Versailles' The Greatest Hits collection album earlier this year had a very similar goal; take old classics and update them to fit a band's new style and budget. Versailles were more liberal in what songs they selected, but I believe the laser focus on just ballads works out for the GazettE. Ballads are their strong suit, even if I'm not the biggest fan of most of them. The production job is good considering the band did it themselves, but it is not perfect. Small things here and there bring the score down such as the main melody of "CASSIS" being buried under all the other elements, the washed out snares, or the prominence of the drums in all songs. I attribute these choices to the audio equipment they used not being neutral on all fronts. I wish I knew what equipment they used because it would be handy to hear the album the way they intended. However, it's not a deal breaker.
 

I've been craving for the band to put a new take on some of their old classics, and the band has at least taken into consideration some of the songs we really want to hear. Opening the album with the rare throwback "枯詩" (Kareuta) is a good way to curry favor from their more cynical, nostalgic fans like me. In addition to "枯詩", the tracks I was interested in most were "体温" (Taion) and "絲" (Ito), both of which sound amazing. The new heavy sections in "体温" were revised and clear up a lot of the transitional awkwardness of the original. It loses some of that "cowboy western" feel of NIL in exchange for more despair and sadness, but I might prefer the new version with a few more listens! Within the context of Traces, it works. "絲" in particular is a very early ballad I would have never expected them to consider! It sounds like a brand new song and is the best example of musical growth I can muster.

 

Other ballads, such as "D.L.N" and "白き憂鬱", did not resonate with me in their original forms but get a new lease on life on Traces. It irks me that "reila", "Cassis", and "紅蓮" are on both Traces but the effort put into these new versions make their inclusions more than acceptable. Unlike the first Traces, there is no explicit mention of a time frame the songs come from. A lack of "千鶴" (Chizuru), OMINOUS, or an extended version of "余韻" (Yoin) is enough to dock an entire point. In place of more recent ballads like "Without A Trace", "PLEDGE", and "UNTITLED", which in contrast don't sound too different from the original versions, I would have liked to see the aforementioned tracks or even earlier ballads such as "十七歳" (Juunanasai).

Then again, the fact that they avoided everything post-TOXIC on Traces 2 is damning in itself, wouldn't you say?

 

Traces Vol. 2 is the most cohesive and focused The GazettE album since DIM. Perhaps the familiarity of the tracks is at play here, or knowing before hand that there would be no forced musical experiments to switch up the flow of the album. It's just the listener, the band, and sixty seven minutes of some classics, some reinterpretations, and at worst pleasant background music. The amount of missed opportunities are minor - if any even exist.

 

 

 

Support the band!

CDJapan

No one cares if you like YOHIO and you aren't annoying anyone. Everyone's been stupid and said some dumb stuff on here, even me. Just come back already.

Just now, AimiGen7 said:

Oh god, I just realised I opened up the door to some sweet roasting on Mucc and Kisaki. xD

Like that door wasn't wide open already?

Just now, Platy said:

 

but i HAVE been listening to vk for ten years and my favorite bands ARE MALISEND, xaax, BFN and gazette and SID and A9 and Royz 

You have to remember, everyone is a noob to me

The idea of banning discussion about an artist is a very slippery slope.

If the moderation team invokes a rule stating that an artist cannot be discussed here because we "don't care", that doesn't stop us from clamping down on discussion about any bands we don't really like. I'll be honest in that I don't care for YOHIO, but just because I do not doesn't mean someone else doesn't and they should be free to talk about visual kei in all its forms here, even white-washed kei. I also don't want to institute a rule banning all discussion of western visual kei, since that gets into a sticky discussion about what is visual kei and what isn't. Very few of us here are qualified to even begin that debate and I don't think the result would be very fruitful - just less discussion overall.

 

Also, YOHIO topics tend to be some of the most interesting on the forum since that's where everyone brings out their Sunday best jokes and memes.

I would be okay in instituting a rule restricting all YOHIO/western visual kei discussion to Global Music General Discussion.

My name is Daisuke Naoto Takarai Takayuki.

 

EDIT: Also "I've been listening to visual kei for over 10 years. My favorite bands are MALISEND, XAA XAA, BFN, the GazettE, SID, A9, and Royz! ^.^ yoroshiku onegaishimasu~

3 hours ago, Peace Heavy mk II said:

I don't think that's necessarily true. I've seen a lot of smaller bands do "one-man lives" that have "special guests" or "featuring ___" that perform as well. 

 

My interpretation is that a one-man is that the show is organized by one band's management in an effort to promote that band only, where as other shows the effort for promoting and organizing is done by one-to-many artists performing. Dir en Grey + Kagerou doing a tour vs. Dir en Grey touring and Kagerou opening at a few of their shows. The latter is still putting the focus on Diru, so it is still "their show."

 

 Sometimes vkei / formerly-vkei acts have loose definitions for things (like maxi-single vs a regular single that comes in 100 types, as an example), or maybe I'm putting too much stock in what these "special guests" actually do (do they MC? Do they sing one song? Do they just collect drink tickets? Sell merch??? Who knows!)

 

TIL ty based piisu

I...honestly don't hear too much of a difference. It's the same boat as DOGMA for me - things pop and are "placed" a little more nicely but it's not a night and day difference.

The distinction between solo artists and bands don't matter too much to me. If it appeals to me, it appeals to me.

The problem I have with using "legitimate" to describe anything is that its impossibly vague. With a definition that nebulous, you can retrofit it to suit any argument you like. A lot of it probably does have to do with what artist or band we were exposed to first, and if we had to lose one to gain the other that could create strong feelings about the whole situation. But it comes down to if the "new" act or the "old" act appeals to them more and they will build their worldview around that.

I'll use Gackt as an example again. When he originally left Malice Mizer to do his own thing, some MM fans were pissed and boycotted the new project. But as MM lost steam and Gackt gained momentum, these detractors were silenced until they were no more. There are still people that don't like Gackt, but no one will ever use the reasoning that it's because he "destroyed" his band for his solo career. We've all made peace with Malice Mizer's fate. Same thing with Miyavi to be honest - he left Due le Quartz and fan girls were not happy and did not follow his solo project in a different style but he ended up gaining more new fans than he lost old ones. Now his solo project is more successful than that visual kei band ever could have been.

 

tl;dr - Legitimacy is a useless metric that is too subjective to even have a conversation about

Park has been ousted.

http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/nation/2017/03/251_225429.html

I get 4 hours of sleep a night and it's been like this for six months. I go to bed at a good time, get up at 5am like clockwork. It makes it impossible to do anything with all this time I spend awake.

4 hours ago, Carmelzors said:

Forum's demise will be totes promised if the staff prefers to gloss over aforementioned, damaging aspects. Not a threat, just something that one of your red admins noted two years ago (still relevant).

 

In the future, please use the report function to direct staff attention to topics you feel we should intervene on. To date, you have filed a grand sum of zero reports. If you care so much, ante up and start becoming the change you want to see. Otherwise, take your shade elsewhere and quit manufacturing controversy.

Brutal as fuck can't wait

Now now, no one here is preaching bigotry so there's no reason for hostility.

@sheepprincessgara, while I appreciate your...enthusiasm please realize that freedom is not absolute, especially not on this forum. This is the random thoughts thread but the rules still apply. I don't appreciate the use of those words. There is also no reason to personally attack @patientZERO for what he is saying, since he is not advocating bigotry. Please change your tone.

 

 

 

| The spiritual successor to Lyrical Sympathy, hands down.

 

This is what I've been waiting for since 2010.

 

The collection album Versailles released at the tail end of 2016 was necessary but not enough. Self-covers set a low bar for a comeback - even if they blew my expectations out of the water - so I've low key been spinning the two new tracks from The Greatest Hits 2007-2016 on repeat. I've been looking for clues to where this band is headed next, and all roads point to Lineage〜薔薇の末裔〜. Lineage is the first original Versailles release since their disastrous self-titled, and with this release all my apprehensions are eradicated. This is how you redeem yourself.

 

There are three reasons why Lineage is a successful album. The first reason is that it is compact; six to nine tracks seems to be the sweet spot for Versailles albums. Compact albums lend themselves well to multiple listens. This goes along with the second reason, which is that they've restored the regality to their sound. Reflecting on releases such as Holy Grail (2011) and Versailles (2012) made me realize that they were slowly stripping away the aristocratic elements in favor of power metal. With Lineage, Versailles has made a complete 180. "La Musique" opens up the release with an immediacy I haven't heard since "Aristocrat's Symphony", and the interlude before the solo is just ace. Songs feel textured with simple riffs leading into complex solos, fast verses leading into slow choruses, and in general, each moment feels meticulously crafted. Contrast this with their solo efforts, where at times both parties felt one-dimensional in their approach to symphonic metal. This leads into my third point, which is the chemistry between the band members has been found again. It sounds like they are working together far better than they have ever before.

 

What I want most from Versailles is close to what Lineage delivers; a Kamijo solo project in all but name with occasional songs and instrumentation by Kamijo, Teru, Yuki, and Hizaki. I don't have composer notes handy, but if I had to trust in my ears, it still sounds like Kamijo and Hizaki are primary composers, but they're collaborating rather than proposing their individual songs. I used to be able to tell what songs were Kamijo's and what songs were Hizaki's and I can't do that with this particular release, which turns out to be a really good thing. To that end, I would love for Teru and Masashi to contribute even more as well. Tracks like "LIBIDO" and "Thanatos" are amazing additions to Versailles' discography because they stand out in a good way, and a remarkable trait about Lineage is that each track is both unique and memorable.

 

Finally, I should mention the stellar production job. Everything between JUBILEE (2010) and Versailles sounds strange, whether it be a weird filter on KAMIJO's voice or an odd guitar tone. The re-recordings on The Greatest Hits 2007-2016 only clarify the problems for tracks like "MASQUERADE". Thankfully, whoever handled The Greatest... also blessed this release, and I hope Versailles continue to collaborate with these sound engineers in future releases.

 

Lineage marks the beginning of a third stage for Versailles, one where they feel cleanly separated from past activities and expectations. Not only does it speak to the strengths of what a good hiatus can do for a band, but it sends a more subtle message that sometimes less is more. Lineage may only be six tracks but it feels like a full album. I've changed my opinion of this band's activities from cautious to optimistic, and I wouldn't be surprised if that's the case for others too.

 

 

I played a bit of Heroes of the Storm to grind out the Oni Genji skin. It's a ton of fun, but it's not my style of game.

Well they back pedaled fast on that one

As this is a currently unfolding event I have moved it into the proper subforum.

3 minutes ago, seurong said:

I read on neogaf that last year avex opened a branch in north america and that maybe they dont want avex jpn and america competing against each other  -  could that be the reason? 

There's more to the world than North America though.

This is what Jim Sterling calls a "Nintendo move"- taking a good situation and fucking it up with a smile on your face the whole time. There's no conceivable benefit to doing this and it's going to bite them sooner rather than later. They legitimately don't want international money and I don't understand why as they don't have to front the shipping costs in the first place.

 

I know for a fact a lot of animation companies rely on sales of Blu-Ray DVDs to make up profit margins lost on animation. Even if only one or two of those were sold overseas that's extra money potentially not going into their pockets anymore. The lack of explanation is even more puzzling. I'd like more info before going all in.

Also, the ability to upload things as an attachment is disabled. It allows members to put files directly on our server and I shouldn't need to explain why that is dangerous. Mods and administrators can do it and even then it looks cleaner to externally link just about everything.